@Raghav not the same. That question is about someone fussy.
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yzTMar 30 '13 at 15:39

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Actually I meant to see the suggestion provided by other members.
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RaghavMar 30 '13 at 15:41

@Raghav the suggestions are all related about a fussy attitude.
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yzTMar 30 '13 at 15:43

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Not so. Reg Dwight comments: "Searching a reverse dictionary for "someone who is very concerned about the fine details" returns punctilious, fastidious, meticulous, and many more." And from the AHD: punc·til·i·ous (pngk-tl-s) adj. 1. Strictly attentive to minute details of form in action or conduct. See Synonyms at meticulous. 2. Precise; scrupulous. These do not necessarily imply 'inclined to fuss - get upset - over minor points'.
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Edwin AshworthMar 30 '13 at 16:27

you may find at least a partial answer to your question, and that is: a person who is high in graphoria. That is a term coined by Johnson O'Connor of the Johnson O'Connor Research Foundation (jocrf in the hyperlink). Graphoria is one of many aptitudes which O'Connor identified and measured in his life's work of matching people with jobs for which they were more-or-less ideally suited by aptitudes.

Graphoria relates to the ability to do "number checking" tasks quickly and efficiently without a great deal of effort. People high in graphoria are detail oriented and are able to scan words, numbers, lists, and symbols and manipulate them in numerous ways with a good deal of accuracy. They make good speed readers. Interestingly, former President Kennedy was high in graphoria and was also a speed reader, or so I was told.

One reason (and there may be many others) why people who are high in graphoria are so good at "number checking" is because they can focus and refocus on many different details without losing their place. For example, when I am reading a book and taking notes at the same time, I have trouble refocusing on what I'm reading, once I've looked away to take notes. As you can guess, I'm very low in graphoria. My eyes just cannot switch between two sources of words, numbers, lists, and symbols quickly and efficiently. There is definitely some drag time in going from one source to the another. Consequently, I would make (and have been!) a terrible clerk.

What I lack in graphoria, however, I more than make up for in ideaphoria, which is an aptitude involving the rapid flow of ideas, which equips me for jobs that require that particular skill set. Teachers, advertisers, writers, public speakers, innovators, inventors, entrepreneurs, even lawyers benefit from being high in ideaphoria.

For your own edification, I recommend highly that you look into the Johnson O'Connor website if you are the least bit curious about what your particular aptitudes are and how to exploit the ones in which you measure high, and "work around" the ones in which you measure on the low side.

OP is asking for a noun, but actually I don't think there is any common "neutral" English term for a person with a flair for noticing details (i.e. - someone who is keenly observant, eagle-eyed).

In the vast majority of contexts, what we're interested in about such a person isn't so much that they notice the details - it's what they do about details that aren't what they expect or want to find. Normally, because they want something changed, in which case we might call them a...

perfectionist, pedant, stickler [for the rules], etc.

Note that most words in this general category (adjectives as well as nouns) usually have negative connotations as per the above. Probably for that reason, we tend to use more general terms such as attentive, meticulous, thorough, reliable when we want to imply positive connotations.

I cannot help but wonder if they really need a noun here, or whether an adjective might not do them just fine.
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tchristMar 30 '13 at 17:51

@tchrist: I think the problem is that any noun that simply identified the fact of a person being "good/quick at spotting salient details" wouldn't be much use unless it carried connotations regarding what they might do after spotting something "significant". And in practice, whatever they do, the rest of us are more than likely just going to think they're nit-picking (by implication, we didn't notice the detail because we don't think it's important).
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FumbleFingersMar 30 '13 at 17:57